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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: content · bat · last · roll · press · capital · pass · drill

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. drill — a practice
  4. drill — army training
  5. content — the amount
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. pass — a permit
  8. press — newspapers
  9. roll — a list
  10. last — to go on
  11. drill — the tool
  12. last — finally
  13. capital — money
  14. bat — the animal
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. content — happy
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. press — to push
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. roll — a cake
  22. capital — a city
  23. press — a publisher
  24. roll — on a roll

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com